HELSINKI, FINLAND AND A CHURCH MADE OF ROCK!

Thursday, August 13, 2026
Helsinki, Finland
59F and sunny

Back to Basics:

I need to remember that I am writing this blog so that we remember what the heck we did when and where. It is also required reading for Randy and Brian (and I hope that isn’t torture). Friends and family are invited along for the adventure, and for bedtime reading if they have trouble going to sleep. Keep in mind that I am listening to tour guides, reading, taking notes, and taking photos all at the same time.  I am not always accurate! 

I had to remind myself this morning that cruises like this are very port intense, but if we were on a bus tour we would not only be visiting a city every day, but we would also be unpacking and packing quite frequently. We only had to unpack once for 27 days!  

Helsinki:

Sunshine and even cooler weather greeted us this morning.  We boarded our bus for Helsinki—we did not know that there would be a shuttle ($12 RT/pp) into the city when we were planning our tours.

We always learn a lot from the tour guide as we travel along--Helsinki is the capital and most populous city in Finland. It is located on the Gulf of Finland. About 694,000 people live in the municipality. As the most populous urban area in Finland, it is the country's most significant center for politics, education, finance, culture, and research. Most Finns speak Finnish, Swedish, and English.

Layla pointed out the Swedish, Russian, and newer Finnish architecture. Like the other countries we visited, their history is tied to Russia, the Soviet Union, and Germany. Sweden occupied the area for 600 years before the Russians.  Freedom is the key word.  Helsinki was established in the 1800s, so it is a newer city.

A couple of interesting tidbits Layla shared:

• Sauna is the only Finnish word in the English language. Finns have a deep rooted sauna culture.
• Finns used walking poles for a very long time, and the rest of Europe laughed at that practice. Now many people use walking poles and we can attest to that!
• Helsinki is also a ship building port—mainly building Arctic vessels and cruise ships.
• It is the smallest Nordic country
• Finland is Europe’s most forested country, with over 75% of its land covered by boreal forests dominated by Scots pine, Norway spruce, and birch. The forests are a defining feature of the country’s landscape and economy.
• Winter is from mid-October to May much of the time—I really could not get a handle on how much snow. But in winter, there are 5 hours of daylight and they use day lamps to help cope mentally with the darkness [note for Coleen!]
• There are over 100,000 shipwrecks in the Baltic Sea with 10,000 documented—according to Tour Guide Layla.
• Finland recently won the 2026 IIHF World Championship in ice hockey!
• The 1952 Olympic Games were held in Helsinki

Our first stop was Temppeliaukio Lutheran Church, a unique modern church carved directly into solid bedrock. The interior was excavated and built directly out of solid rock and is bathed in natural light which enters through the skylight surrounding the center copper dome. The church is used frequently as a concert venue due to its excellent acoustics. A very interesting concept.

Temppeliaukio Church entrance

The altar at Temppeliaukio Lutheran Church

Organ

Close up of bedrock--granite

From there we headed to Sibelius Park, dedicated to Finnish composer, Jean Sibelius. It is an abstract welded cluster of acid-resistant stainless steel pipes in an undulating pattern, each installed on granite natural to the terrain. The purpose of the modern design is to symbolically evoke Sibelius’ music using public art.  It is a sound sculpture—the pipe cluster can generate sounds due to wind, rain, and echoing voices.  Visitors can experience the art immersion by standing within the cavity.  I really appreciated the thought behind this piece.

Tribute to Jean Sibelius

I am an art appreciator, but I did not care for

the sculpture of Sibelius' head on the right

Another view 

Our last stop was an open air market with high quality Finnish products and fresh food.  I found something especially sweet for my dear grand nephew Archie for Christmas.  We found woolen goods, knives, furs, wooden kitchen tools, jams and jellies, wooden toys, and more.  The Finns are proud of their handicrafts. 

Food vendors in yellow tents

Craft and souvenir vendors in white tents

Strawberries for 8 euros per "box"

Soft wolf fur for sale-

did not check the price

Top row: salmon soup, deep fried vendace, fish n chips,

nordic meatballs, mixed fish. Bottom row: reindeer hotdog,

vendace meal, sea salmon, lapland reindeer, 

mixed reindeer. On the end: salmon paella

We had a good stop in Helsinki—even though it was cool, the sun warmed us.  We had plenty of time in the market.  I wanted to see Santa Claus! 

We get an extra hour of sleep tonight!! TK enjoys resetting our two alarm clocks so often.

By the way, every city we have visited has been incredibly clean. 

TK’s Takes:  He skipped the Rock Church and went to a bakery instead. He said they had the best coffee (he bought a pound) and cinnamon rolls.  He also noted that Finns smoke thin cigarettes. Right away he noticed the geese in the park -- we figured out they were barnacle geese

Barnacle Geese

(not my photo)

TAILLIN, ESTONIA AND A PARTIAL SOLAR ECLIPSE

Wednesday, August 12, 2026
Tailinn, Estonia
63F, very windy, cloudy until the eclipse!

 

A gateway into a Medieval city!

What a quaint fairy tale city Taillin is! Medieval is definitely the word of the day! Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, sits on the Gulf of Finland. It blends one of Europe’s best-preserved medieval Old Towns—a UNESCO World Heritage site—with a world-leading, digital-first economy. Just 50 miles south of Helsinki, it is a highly walkable city known for its cobblestone streets and thriving tech scene.  Taillin is also considered the oldest capital in Europe. It is also considered one of the least polluted capitals in the world.

As of 2026, the population of Tallinn is estimated to be approximately 457,000 residents within the city limits.  Estonia, the smallest Baltic state has a population of about 1.3 million people.

Like the other Baltic countries we have visited, we can easily observe its Danish, Swedish, Russian, German, and Soviet Communist (Operation Barbarossa) roots. Established in the 12th century, it has seen its share of political turnovers. Just like the other countries, it overcame the time of the Russian tsars to be influenced by the Germans, then the Communists. Estonia was finally liberated in 1991 and is a Parliamentary Republic.

We heard the story of the Singing Revolution— in the late 1980s, massive demonstrations against the Soviet regime began. The Soviets were censoring religion and other freedoms in all three Baltic states. The opposition that wanted independence coordinated public song festivals as a key element of resistance. Tens of thousands of people sang national and folk songs in mass gatherings.  

Just as the Soviets were planning to destroy the Medieval walls of Taillin to make way for other construction, Estonia was liberated—we truly enjoyed those Medieval gates and walls today! 

In America we have no idea what such oppression is like.

It was very windy and chilly when we took the shuttle to an area closer to the Old Town—cost $12/each for round trip.

A bakery stop, a long climb to the Upper Old Town, souvenir shops, more amber, beautiful churches, and cobblestone streets that were not too treacherous.  Estonians easily admit to having lots of cold weather. Beautiful wool sweaters, socks, and scarves fill the shops, as well as amber, wooden kitchen utensils, felted hats, and the usual trinkets.

Love the color!

The Polish Embassy in Estonia

Note the Polish flag

Halfway up to Upper Old Town

You can do it!

The view was worth the climb!

TK should not have said, "Look, they're having sale..."

Note jacket, sweatshirt, and turtleneck!

Amber galore!

Amber does not weigh very much...

It floats in saltwater.

Plenty of room in my luggage for amber!

Readers need to know that the jewelry shop's

restroom was in the cellar--typical

in Europe. This one happens 

to be the oldest cellar in the 

Upper Old Town area

It did not cost me 1 euro, you

can guess why...

A government official's estate

Orthodox Church

Thankfully, we can still lots of steps to do that climb, but the view was worth it! The rest is all downhill.

TK decided he wanted to have something to eat, so we stopped at a square full of restaurants with outdoor seating (and blankets on every seat). Menus declared elk, bear, boar, and other such “delights.”  We opted for fried dumplings and fried dark bread (like pumpernickel), and 2 Coke Zeros.

Dumplings, foreground

dark bread, background

and TK!

The dumplings had a sausage filling (beef and pork, I asked), and that bread was garlicky, but both were delicious.

We were ready to return to the ship, caught the shuttle, and I prepared my camera and tripod for the partial solar eclipse. After dinner I found a spot on the Sun Deck #16. It was so windy I couldn’t use my tripod. It was too hard to hold the camera steady, so I had to give up. There were only a few people onboard with any interest in the celestial rarity, so TK, Chai and Maurice from Hawaii, and I watched the marvelous event together. 

View from Sapphire Princess of Taillin

haha--this is my camera's version of the sun

when I was practicing for the eclipse

I couldn't hold the camera still

SOLAR ECLIPSE

I purchased solar eclipse glasses, ISO 12312-2 certified —  the international standard that ensures the glasses block harmful UV, infrared, and intense visible light---before we left Erie. I already had a avery good  solar filter for my camera in 2023, before the year Erie was in the path of totality for a solar eclipse.  Brooke, Breanna, and I all had the right cameras, the right filters, tripods, and we all took decent photos! Brian was part of the camera crew too, as well as Randy.  I was prepared for the partial eclipse in Taillin!

Peak time was 8:02 p.m., Eastern European Summer Time.  If anyone knows me, they know I was on the top deck by 7 p.m., and a good thing, because it took an hour to set everything up. One other couple, the aforementioned Chai and Maurice, were right there with me.

I knew that Taillin was the in the path of totality, but it was predicted that 61% of the sun would be obscured.  Iceland, Greenland, and northern Spain got the full treatment, and there were cruises in those places, but this was the itinerary we really wanted.

All day it was very cloudy so I wasn't sure how this would go, but the clouds cleared about a half hour before the eclipse.  The moon took little bites out of the sun as time passed after 8:02--and in my opinion the sun ended up being at least 85% covered.  

Image from Warsaw, Poland

 

Tomorrow we will visit Helsinki!

RIGA, LATVIA AND ITS HUGE MARKET!

Tuesday, August 11, 2026
Riga, Latvia
66F and sunny

TK!

Janie

Today we decided to go to Riga on our own. Riga is the capital of Latvia and its largest and oldest city. It is the second largest city in the Baltics with 591,882 inhabitants in 2025. Latvia has a population of about 2 million people.

An interesting bridge!

The ship docked within a short walking distance of the old city about 8:30 a.m.  We disembarked at 9 a.m. only to discover that Latvians must be late sleepers. Shops did not seem to open till 11 a.m., and coffee shops and bakeries were few and far between.

A square surrounded by restaurants

We headed to the market on cobblestone streets!  Wow! The ship lecturer said it was the largest market in northern Europe, but in my humble opinion, it was the largest market I have ever seen. 

The main structures are five indoor pavilions constructed by reusing old German Zeppelin hangars. The space is 778,000 sq. ft. with more than 3,000 trade stands. That does not include the outdoor spaces filled with vendors in the area surrounding the hangars.  

Four of the five pavilions that make 
up the market

Our favorite Barcelona market is not this big-and neither is the market in Florence.  Walking around looking at food labels would be a great way to learn vocabulary—I am not familiar with the Latvian language.

Beef, pork, chicken, fish—smoked or fresh—cheeses, fruits, vegetables (bright red tomatoes)—the largest blueberries and plums I have even seen. Candy, raspberries, carrots, onions, potatoes, cabbage, oils, honey (no maple syrup), breads, nuts, pasta, rice, onions, garlic, pickled everything – sauerkraut, cauliflower, garlic, and more!  Dog food, clothing, amber, pots and pans, purses, linens, and so much more.  There were places to eat—dumplings, even their version of pancakes!

Plums galore!

Beautiful blueberries!

Flowers and vegetables

All things pickled!

Fish!

Dumplings!

Tim finally dragged me out of the market (not really, he likes to look around too), and off we were on to more cobblestone streets. I am so impressed by the variety of architecture—Romanesque, Gothic, Baroque, Modern, Art Nouveau, Classic. We were told to always look up—so many sweet little sculptures on rooftops.

No scarcity of churches

and TK took a better photo!

Statue honoring Latvian

Riflemen from 1915 to 1918

Cats!

Another cat!

I liked this tower

Finally, souvenir shops! I was disappointed that we could not stop in such shops in Poland or Lithuania, our tours were so intense and we couldn’t even find a t-shirt for Erie’s Zabawa next year.  I was able to find exactly what I wanted today!

We stopped about 12:30 p.m. for a cup of coffee and a sweet treat.  The ship leaves Riga at 3 p.m. and we still had a hike back to the ship. By this time we had over 12,000 steps.

Our choices

Austina in Latvian

Palmiers in French

Very reasonably priced, about 

$1.50

 

The street back to the ship

Lest we forget...

Riga is a very pleasant city--reasonably priced, too.  The people have been very friendly every where we have gone.

TK's Takes:  He saw a seagull grab a fish from the "canal" that the ship was in when we docked.  A lot of Italian restaurants in Riga. Hail, lots of hail, just before we left Riga.

Hail is a first on a cruise for us!